The Italian fashion capital of Milan provided a fitting backdrop for one of the year’s most anticipated horological events. From January 19 to 21, the seventh edition of LVMH Watch Week transformed Via Montenapoleone into a showcase of exceptional watchmaking, where nine prestigious maisons unveiled their latest creations to an audience of international journalists, retailers, and collectors. Among the constellation of luxury brands presenting their innovations, Bvlgari emerged with a particularly compelling narrative centered on “The Art of Gold,” a theme that perfectly encapsulates the Roman jeweler’s unique position at the intersection of haute joaillerie and Swiss watchmaking excellence.
Bvlgari watches at the 2026 LVMH Watch Week represented more than mere product launches. They embodied a profound dialogue between past and present, between Roman goldsmithing traditions and contemporary mechanical innovation. The maison presented four distinct timepieces that each tell a chapter of a singular story: the Maglia Milanese Monete secret watch, the gemstone-laden Tubogas Manchette, the mechanically evolved Serpenti Seduttori Automatic, and the artisanal Lvcea Notte di Luce. Together, these creations demonstrate Bvlgari’s commitment to celebrating its origins through constant reinvention, a philosophy that has defined the brand since its founding in 1884.
The Tubogas Manchette: A Jeweled Celebration of 1970s Glamour
The Tubogas Manchette stands as perhaps the most visually arresting piece among the Bvlgari watches at the 2026 LVMH Watch Week. This sculptural cuff watch draws direct inspiration from an archival model dating to 1974, an era when Bvlgari’s design language embraced bold geometric forms and chromatic exuberance. The contemporary interpretation captures that same spirit of audacious creativity while incorporating modern horological sensibilities.
Crafted in yellow gold, the Tubogas Manchette employs the maison’s signature Tubogas technique—a gasless tube construction method that creates a flexible, coiled bracelet without the need for soldering. This technique, which Bvlgari has mastered over decades, allows the watch to wrap sensuously around the wrist like a second skin. The single coil design balances presence with wearability, making a statement without overwhelming the wearer.
What truly distinguishes this piece is its extraordinary gemstone setting. Nearly 12 carats of diamonds shimmer across the gold coils, while a kaleidoscope of colored stones adds vibrant punctuation: warm citrines, rosy rubellites, verdant peridots, purple amethysts, golden topazes, and fiery orange spessartites. This chromatic symphony reflects Bvlgari’s historic mastery of colored gemstones, a skill honed through the brand’s Roman heritage and its proximity to ancient traditions of lapidary art.
The watch is powered by the Lady Solotempo Automatic BVS100 movement, an in-house caliber that was first introduced in 2025 for the Serpenti collection. Its presence in the Tubogas Manchette demonstrates Bvlgari’s strategic approach to movement development, creating versatile calibers that can animate multiple collections while maintaining the brand’s commitment to mechanical excellence. The transparent sapphire caseback reveals the oscillating weight decorated with serpent-scale patterns, a subtle nod to another of Bvlgari’s iconic design codes.
The Maglia Milanese Monete: Ancient Coins Meet Renaissance Craftsmanship
Among the Bvlgari watches at the 2026 LVMH Watch Week, the Maglia Milanese Monete perhaps best embodies the maison’s “Art of Gold” theme through its fusion of historical references and contemporary design sensibility. This secret watch, where the dial is concealed beneath a decorative element, draws upon two distinct craft traditions: the ancient Roman fascination with coinage and the Renaissance-era development of Milanese mesh.
Executed in rose gold, the watch features a supple Milanese mesh bracelet that flows like liquid metal around the wrist. This braiding technique, which originated in Milan during the Renaissance, creates an extraordinarily flexible band through interlocking loops of precious metal. The result is both architectural and organic, rigid in its construction yet fluid in its movement. Indeed, a duality that speaks to Bvlgari’s Roman-Swiss identity.
The centerpiece of the Maglia Milanese Monete is a silver Monete coin that serves as both decorative element and functional cover for the hidden dial beneath. Bvlgari’s long-standing fascination with ancient Roman coins dates back to the brand’s earliest years, when founder Sotirio Bulgari first incorporated archaeological artifacts into his jewelry designs. These ancient coins, struck centuries ago, carry the weight of history while serving as inspiration for contemporary luxury. The coin in this new creation is not an original ancient piece but rather a carefully crafted homage that maintains the aesthetic integrity while fitting the watch’s proportions.
Beneath this elegant facade ticks the Piccolissimo BVP100 movement, measuring just 13.50 millimeters in diameter and 2.50 millimeters in thickness, while weighing a mere 1.9 grams. This mechanical marvel, comprising 102 components, represents one of the smallest movements in modern watchmaking. First introduced in 2022, the caliber now appears in a new version featuring crown winding and a sapphire caseback, allowing admirers to observe the miniature mechanism at work. The extraordinary compactness of this movement is what enables the Maglia Milanese Monete to maintain its refined, jewelry-like proportions while housing genuine mechanical timekeeping.
The Serpenti Seduttori Automatic: Mechanical Evolution of an Icon
The Serpenti Seduttori Automatic marks a significant technical evolution for one of Bvlgari’s most recognizable designs. First introduced in 1948, the Serpenti collection has long been synonymous with seductive femininity and transformative power, drawing inspiration from the ancient symbolism of the serpent as a creature of renewal. For much of its modern history, the Serpenti line has been powered primarily by quartz movements, with only occasional forays into mechanical timekeeping. The Bvlgari watches at the 2026 LVMH Watch Week changed this narrative by introducing automatic winding to the Serpenti Seduttori, reconnecting the collection with its mechanical heritage.
Two variations of the Serpenti Seduttori Automatic were unveiled in Milan, each articulating a different facet of Bvlgari’s vision of contemporary luxury. The first features a striking malachite dial, that vibrant green stone long associated with protection and healing in various cultural traditions. The 34-millimeter rose gold case frames this natural stone beautifully, while a cabochon-cut pink rubellite adorns the crown, creating a harmonious color palette of verdant greens and warm pinks. Rose gold-plated hands and indices complete the design, ensuring legibility while maintaining the piece’s jewelry-like character.
The second variation takes a more restrained approach with a white opaline dial that offers subtle luminosity and refinement. This version features a fully diamond-set bracelet comprising 117 brilliant-cut diamonds, transforming the entire watch into a scintillating jewel for the wrist. The hexagonal pattern of the bracelet, inspired by serpent scales, creates a flexible, second-skin effect that has become a hallmark of the Serpenti Seduttori line.
Both models are powered by the Lady Solotempo BVS100 automatic movement, developed and produced entirely in-house at Bvlgari’s manufacture in Le Sentier, Switzerland. This caliber, with its 19-millimeter diameter and 3.9-millimeter thickness, represents years of dedicated research into miniature automatic movements suitable for jewelry watches. The 50-hour power reserve ensures practical wearability, while the sapphire caseback reveals the oscillating weight decorated with the iconic serpent scale pattern.
The Lvcea Notte di Luce: Japanese Artistry Meets Roman Soul
Perhaps the most artisanally intensive piece among the Bvlgari watches at the 2026 LVMH Watch Week is the Lvcea Notte di Luce. It’s a timepiece that represents a remarkable collaboration between Italian design sensibility and centuries-old Japanese craftsmanship. This watch brings together Urushi lacquer work and Raden mother-of-pearl inlay, two traditional Japanese techniques that trace their origins back to prehistoric times.
The dial of each Lvcea Notte di Luce is crafted by Yasuhiro Asai, a master of Urushi lacquer working from his Kyoto atelier. Against a profound black lacquer background, tiny fragments of mother-of-pearl emerge in a shimmering mosaic that seems to capture light itself. The effect is mesmerizing, reminiscent of starlight on dark water or the play of aurora against a night sky. Each dial requires sixty days of patient labor to complete, with Asai employing charcoal to polish the surface between each application of lacquer, building up multiple layers that reveal fresh depth and brilliance within the material.
The Urushi technique itself is an ancient art form, with lacquer extracted from tree sap that is then tinted, applied, and polished to create both a protective and decorative finish. The Raden technique of embedding mother-of-pearl fragments adds another dimension, as each piece of nacre refracts light differently depending on the viewing angle, creating a dynamic, ever-changing surface. The result is that no two dials are identical, each Lvcea Notte di Luce possesses its own unique character and pattern of luminescence.
The 33-millimeter case combines stainless steel with rose gold, creating a sophisticated two-tone aesthetic that complements the dial’s artistry. The bezel is set with 1.075 carats of brilliant-cut diamonds, adding a frame of scintillation that enhances the dial’s inherent luminosity. A synthetic pink sapphire cabochon adorns the crown, topped with a single diamond. In addition, the bracelet alternates polished and satin-brushed finishes in steel and rose gold.
Inside beats an automatic movement with a 42-hour power reserve, offering reliable timekeeping that matches the artistic ambition of the dial. Limited to just 80 pieces for each variation, the Lvcea Notte di Luce occupies a unique position in Bvlgari’s portfolio.
Conclusion: Bvlgari’s Distinctive Voice in Contemporary Watchmaking
The Bvlgari watches at the 2026 LVMH Watch Week demonstrate why the Roman maison occupies such a distinctive position in the contemporary luxury landscape. Unlike pure watchmakers who entered the jewelry space, or jewelers who simply license watch designs, Bvlgari has genuinely integrated both disciplines into a singular creative vision. The brand possesses legitimate mechanical watchmaking credentials, its Octo Finissimo collection holds multiple world records for ultra-thin complications, while maintaining its identity as a jewelry house with roots in ancient Roman goldsmithing traditions.
As LVMH Watch Week 2026 demonstrated, this approach resonates with contemporary collectors who seek pieces with genuine craftsmanship, cultural depth, and distinctive design vision. Whether through the ancient coin artistry of the Maglia Milanese Monete, the gemstone exuberance of the Tubogas Manchette, the mechanical evolution of the Serpenti Seduttori Automatic, or the patient artisanry of the Lvcea Notte di Luce, Bvlgari has proven once again that the most compelling luxury comes not from following established formulas but from honoring heritage while pursuing innovation with confidence and creativity.
Featured image: Bvlgari
Lydia Oladejo is a creative writer with over seven years of experience writing intriguing stories and engaging content. As a Staff Writer at Sewelo, she explores the artistry and history of high jewelry, blending her expertise in storytelling with a passion for luxury design.
